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RCMP seek assistance after attempted sex assault on Gondola Way

The RCMP are seeking the driver of a vehicle who interrupted an attempted sex assault on Gondola Way at roughly 2 a.m. on the morning of Jan. 27.
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The RCMP are seeking the driver of a vehicle who interrupted an attempted sex assault on Gondola Way at roughly 2 a.m. on the morning of Jan. 27.

According to the RCMP, a woman had walked off a bus and was heading home when an unknown male pushed her to the ground from behind. The male tried to remove the victim's pants. When a vehicle approached and stopped in the area, the male fled the scene. The victim did not report the incident until the next afternoon, too late for police and dogs to comb the area.

The RCMP is looking for the driver of the vehicle as they might have seen what looked like a scuffle on Gondola Way at that time, or any other witnesses who may have been in the area. The victim's jacket was pulled over her face in the fall to the ground, and she did not see her attacker. The suspect may have a French Canadian accent, and the victim remembers him saying "quiet."

If you have any information, contact the Whistler RCMP at 604-932-3044 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

Staff Sergeant Steve LeClair said it was important to remember that Whistler is still a safe town, although occasionally incidents like this will be reported. "(People should) be cautious and travel in pairs when possible, and you should always be cognizant of your surroundings," he said.

The RCMP hasn't ruled out a connection with other cases of attempted sex assault and flashing that have occurred recently, including a case reported at roughly 7:28 p.m. on Jan. 25. In that case a woman was walking home down Lorimer Road when she got the impression that a vehicle was following her. The vehicle then turned into the daycare parking area, and soon after passed her again as she headed down the valley trail. When she reached the turnoff to Myrtle Philip Community School she noticed the vehicle once again, and was approached by a male who asked her if she had the time. She took out her phone to tell him, at which point he made lewd comments and she realized that he was masturbating.

The male did not attempt to stop her as she hurried from the scene and contacted police a few moments later.

The male is described as approximately six feet in his late 30s to early 40s. He was wearing a dark jacket, dark jeans and had a dark toque on his head, and the vehicle was a silver Subaru.

That description matches an incident that occurred in the Brio subdivision on Jan. 12, and LeClair believes those cases may be related. Less than half an hour earlier, a woman was attacked on the pedestrian bridge near Nordic by a male, who took her phone and attempted to silence her by putting a hand over her mouth. When she tried to escape the male tripped her and then told her not to follow him.

The RCMP believes it could be the same person in those cases, although there were differences in the description of his clothing.

If you have any information on these incidents contact the police or Crime Stoppers.

Search continues for missing Whistler man

Friends and family of Mike Grefner are continuing to search for the 34-year-old, while the RCMP said they are continuing to follow up on leads. One promising lead that placed Grefner at a café in Pemberton near the time of his disappearance was set aside after the RCMP interviewed a man that was mistaken for Grefner.

Other tips have come in from as far away as Alberta and the Lower Mainland.

Grefner has not had any contact with friends and family since around 5:15 a.m. on Jan. 17. He was reported missing in the early hours of Jan. 19 after he failed to turn up for his shift as a DJ at Maxx Fish.

There is a Facebook page for Grefner and a website at findmikegrefner.ca that is accepting donations to pay a private investigator.

Male facing assault charges

A case of jealousy may have been behind an attack on a male and female in the early morning hours of Jan. 28. According to the RCMP, a 24-year-old Vancouver male was arrested and held for two days after assaulting his Vancouver girlfriend and a mutual male friend from Langley.

The three left a nightclub at 2 a.m. and returned to their hotel rooms when the dispute began. The suspect is alleged to have accused the two of an affair, and then punched both victims repeatedly in the face. The RCMP was called and found the suspect outside the hotel. They took the male victim to the Whistler Health Care Centre for treatment. A delivery driver took the female to the health care centre.

The suspect is now facing two charges of assault.

Impaired charge multiplied

At 3:29 a.m. on Jan. 29 the RCMP received a call from an ambulance regarding a BMW flipped onto its side on Lorimer Road. The driver had been pulled out of the vehicle by a taxi driver, and was uninjured. The police began an impaired driving investigation, at which point the driver became violent and was placed in handcuffs. A 33-year-old Whistler male refused to provide a breath sample, resulting in a 24-hour suspension, administrative driving prohibition and a court appearance on Apr. 4 to answer charges of impaired driving and resisting arrest.